Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days
by pokemonpuck
Summary: Lady Paluntena and Viridi Nature are two juniors attending Angel Land University: one of the best universities in the world. A graduation requirement is to complete 100 hours of volunteer work. Waiting until the last minute, both get stuck with becoming 'big siblings' to kids in ALU Hospital's Childrens Ward. What happens when they are assigned to two twins who are polar opposites?
1. It's Gonna Be a Long Day

**Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days**

**Chapter 1:** It's Gonna Be a Long Day 

* * *

"Paluntena, are you _sure_ this is a good idea? Hospitals are _full_ of sick people. You're bound to catch some disgusting disease. What if you catch like… polio or something?" a fairly high-pitched voice said.

"Then it's a good thing I'm vaccinated." came a more mature voice.

"Hmph. Well whatever. I'll come and visit you when you're stuck in the iron lung just to say 'I told you so!" the higher pitched voice snapped back.

"And I'll be sure to cough all over you so that you catch some of my germs. Then we can be side-by-side iron lung buddies!"

Angel Land University is one of the leading schools in the world. It's a private school few can afford without a scholarship and even then scholarships don't even cover a pinch of the cost of semesterly tuition. The cost is for good reason, however. Angel Land is host to many famous business alumni. By the time you graduate and start your own job, the price of the tuition will be nothing compared to the money you will be making.

This brings us to one of the most promising students currently in enrollment at ALU. Lady Paluntena, or as she prefers to be called just Paluntena, is a young woman destined for greatness. Born into a wealthy family of ALU alumni, her destiny was set the moment she was born. She is the next in line to take over the Paluntena family name in the world of medicine and science. Her family comes from generations of ACU alumni and it was her ancestors that helped build and shape the medical department. This isn't at all what she wants to do with her future, however. Her dream is to start a flight enterprise business and become a pilot. Needless to say, her parents were less than thrilled when she forged documents to switch to the business center.

That being said, Paluntena is enrolled in business school along with her 'friend', Viridi Nature. The shorter, blonde haired girl's case is very similar to Paluntena's- in the sense of her being born into a family of ALU alumni and she's expected to eventually take over the family alternative energy and conservation business. Both women are aiming for the top and have high expectations from family and the school itself.

"Ugh, why do I have to do this too?" Viridi whined and put her forehead on her desk. She turned her head to look at Paluntena, who was sitting with her legs crossed on a green beanbag chair.

Paluntena was currently looking over paper in her lap. Without looking up, she hummed back, "Technically you didn't have to do this for volunteer work. You could have signed up for anything you wanted when the sign-up sheets first came out. I was working on my statistics project so I didn't get a chance to look at the list, unlike you who waited until the last minute."

Viridi quickly turned her head to instead look at her dorm wall. The rooms weren't huge but they weren't small either. Each student was assigned a single room in a sort of apartment complex styled building. Viridi was located on the sixth floor, while Paluntena's room was currently on the eighth floor. The blonde's room had a very earthy tone to it. All around the room were potted plants that she grew herself. Delicate orchids dangled next to her desk lamp and loose ivy crawled down her bookshelf.

Viridi picked herself up and took a look at the form that was near the corner of her desk.

**STUDENT VOLUNTEER**

Did you finish all of your homework? Are you looking for extra credits? Haven't completed the ALU required volunteer hours? Then this sheet is for you! All ALU students are required to attend a 6 hour minimum weekly volunteer job of their choosing for a total of 100 volunteer hours. Students are required to write a report at the end of their volunteer time, going over experiences they have had and detailing how it may or may not fit into their career path.

**VOLUNTEER SITES**

Last updated: 8/12/19

Daycare: FULL

Farm Land: FULL

Paws and Claws: FULL

Residential home/Living assistance: FULL

Children's Ward: OPEN

Soup Kitchen: FULL

"I still think that this is a bad idea. I know I'll get assigned the snot nosed kid with pneumonia or appendicitis nerd." Viridi signed and grabbed her pen. It was a pink pen with purple ribbon around it and at the top of it was a ball of fluff that shed everywhere. At the bottom she selected 'Children's Ward' and signed her name in half-assed cursive.

"They won't give you a contagious child, Viridi. We'll get assigned someone else, like…. Like a temporary in-house patient or a terminally ill patient." Paluntena reached up from her spot in the beanbag chair and put her paper on top of Viridi's. Paluntena's signature was elegant.

Viridi looked at the green haired woman with a blunt face. "Uh-huh… and that makes it better how?"

"It doesn't. Do you mind dropping these off at the volunteer center at some point today? Can I trust you that they'll make it there?" Paluntena reached for her book bag and pulled out her school laptop. As soon as she opened the cover, music started blasting from the speakers to which she quickly fumbled for the volume button on her keyboard.

"Don't do that in the hospital," Viridi snorted, "you'll end up giving some poor kid a heart attack... And yes, you can trust me to bring them to the volunteer center, since you asked. I'll drop it off when I go for my 2:30 class."

"...Sounds like a plan…" Paluntena trailed off. She was already reading something on her laptop, probably an email from a professor or looking over a paper.

Viridi tried to look over Paluntena's shoulder but instead she just slipped out of her chair and landed on her fluffy rug. "Ow… when is this dumb assignment supposed to start, anyway? It better not start around midterms."

The smaller woman waited for a response but nothing came.

"Ahem. I _asked _when the volunteer job starts." she repeated a bit louder and a bit snobbier.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I was reading something." Paluntena snapped out of her trance to look at Viridi who was now laying on her stomach with her head in her hands on the ground. "Why are you on the floor?"

"Some things are best left unsaid." she shrugged. She crawled up and around the beanbag chair, tripping on her purple dress as she padded over on her hands and knees. "What were you reading?" she put her arms on the side of the chair, just close enough where she could see the laptop screen and not get a face full of long green hair.

"There was just breaking news of a warehouse fire down in Cape Town. Apparently it was supposed to be abandoned but it ended up being a hang out spot for some of the homeless folks."

"Click on the live video feed. I've had a boring day. I want to see some action!" Viridi punched the beanbag chair, earning a glare from Paluntena.

The video feed buffered for a moment before cutting to a live helicopter shot of the warehouse currently on fire. Windows were blasted out from the pressure inside of the building and angry flames greedily ate up the oxygen.

A female commentator's voice came on over the roar of the helicopter propellers. "We're here at the scene of the currently 3 alarm warehouse fire on Goodwill Boulevard in Cape Town. The fire was reported around 1:00 this afternoon after a bystander saw what looked like fire on the second floor. Firefighters quickly arrived at the scene and are currently working to put out the flames. It's unclear if anyone was inside at the time and still is inside. We will be giving live updates as they come in-" the woman suddenly stopped. "I'm getting news that it has been upped to a 4 alarm fire. The size of the warehouse is extensive and it appears to be spreading quicker than it can be extinguished. We've also received word that the chief of police is asking all residents to stay away from the area as the building and is susceptible to collapse."

The sky camera panned to one of the ground cameras for a closer shot. A few 'watch it, bud!'s could be heard as firefighters pushed around the flocking camera crews. Suddenly, an explosion in the building caused the fire to roar harder and debris to fly out. Bricks, wood, and shattered glass rained from the sky. Civilians screamed and firefighters ran for cover. The camera started to pan backwards as the camera people were trying to get away while still capturing the juicy shots.

Someone off to the side could be heard yelling, "The children! There's two children still inside!" A faint glimpse from the corner of the camera showed an older woman being restrained by police officers as she fought them to try and run back into the building. Garbled yelling soon followed as the first responders went into overdrive upon hearing that there were still people in the building, and children at that.

Then came the creaking. A long, ugly creak that can only signal one thing. The camera crew members were violently pushed backwards as police officers grabbed a hold of them. They could be heard yelling, "Cut the feed! Cut the feed!" Nobody had the time to react, however, as the creaking became a full-blown screech and a part of the building collapsed.

The live feed cut out just as the building collapsed. A shrill noise filled the air as the stream connection was cut and Paluntena quickly hit the mute button to save herself from going deaf. Both the green haired woman and the blonde were silent. Viridi was the first to break the silence.

"Holy shit," she whispered.

Without saying a word, Paluntena closed her laptop and gently put it back in her bag. She packed up the rest of her things and promptly stood up, taking her bag with her as her legs carried her towards the door. She nodded at Viridi while looking at nothing in particular before exiting the dorm. She stood with her back pressed against the door.

"Holy shit."

A full police report was released three days later to the public. The fire was caused by an unattended electric heater malfunctioning. Nobody knew why electricity was still being run to the building; it was an abandoned factory. Homeless civilians took refuge inside of the facility to take advantage of the shelter it provided.

* * *

The police report detailed of two children and a dog who were trapped in the building when the fire broke out. After the explosion and building collapse, both children were found and were rescued by first responders. One had minor injuries while the other is listed in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. Both children were life-flighted to ALU Children's Center for treatment.

After speaking with several of the residents, police determined that the children were taking care of a puppy on the other side of the factory due to one of the residents complaining about the dog. Any exits on that side of the building were boarded up. With the route back to the main area of the building cut off, they were forced to stay in place. The explosion was caused by some propane tanks that were left behind and set off a chain reaction. With the building being old and with support structures damaged, parts of the ceiling beams collapsed.

The puppy was also found alive and is currently receiving treatment at a local veterinarian hospital.

The report ended with the current condition of the children are being held confidential. Police are working hard with the community to find shelter for the misplaced homeless civilians. More updates were to follow as they came out.

* * *

_One Month Later…_

A sharp rapping of knuckles on a wooden door snapped the early morning lull in two. "Viridi, are you up? You're going to be late." Paluntena called from the hallway. There was no response. "Viridi, are you awake-" Paluntena was cut off by the door swinging open to reveal a very disgruntled looking young woman.

"Do you know what time it is?" Viridi hissed. "You're the only person functioning this early in the morning!"

Paluntena's fairly neutral face twitched into a quivering smile. The green haired woman cupped her mouth with her hands and had to turn away as to not look at Viridi. Said woman was standing in the doorway, blonde hair sticking up like a Troll doll. The plant lover had literally just rolled out of bed moments before her _acquaintance_ knocked on her dorm door. Viridi's face quickly turned red in a mixture of embarrassment and anger. "Say. Nothing." She pointed at Paluntena with threatening eyes as she slowly closed the door.

Ten minutes later Viridi opened her door and stepped out with her key in her hand. After locking and checking the door she turned to the still smirking woman. "You saw _nothing_." She sneered.

Both women were dressed comfortably yet professionally at the same time. Paluntena wore a simple pale green, flowy suit top and bottom with some platform heels despite the young woman being 6'3" as was. Before stepping out of the dorms, she pulled down a pair of white-rimmed sunglasses from the top of her head.

Viridi on the other hand was wearing a complementing pale-purple short sleeve dress that went to her kneecaps with a white long sleeve shirt underneath. Her dress had a sort of floral pattern to it that was slightly darker than the base purple. On her feet were some sandals that tied around her ankles. Her hair was tied up in her signature side-ponytail with a faux Lily flower hair clip holding it in place.

Paluntena squinted down at her phone as it was hard to see due to the sun reflecting off of it. "Our driver says they're over by-" she was cut off by a horn honking. "Ah, there they are."

Both women approached a pearl white SUV. After clambering inside and buckling off, the driver looked over their shoulder. "Just confirming, ALU Hospital, correct?"

"That is correct." Paluntena smiled at them. Viridi looked out the window and crossed her arms.

"Why couldn't we have just taken one of your dad's company cars? He has like a bajillion of them and they're all professional looking." The blonde pouted.

The green haired woman next to her put her hands on her lap. "You know where I stand with my father right now." Her voice was sweet but Viridi could hear the bitterness.

The rest of the ride was silent. It was only about a ten-minute drive to the university owned hospital. The building itself was massive. With one main hub area, it split off into a web of different buildings. ALU Hospital was regarded as one of the top hospitals in the world because of its state-of-the-art technology and world-renounced doctors. The hospital itself worked with the university medical students and offered them hands-on experience. It also provided volunteer work hours, which is what Paluntena and Viridi were arriving for.

The driver of the SUV they were riding in came to a stop outside of the front entrance of the main hub area. Both women thanked the driver and climbed out.

"Here we are." Paluntena forced a smile and looked up at the enormous glass dome in front of them.

Viridi visibly slouched. "It's going to be a _long_ day."


	2. It's a Long Road Home

**Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days**

**Chapter 2: **It's a Long Road Home

* * *

"Hey, kid! What did I tell yeh 'bout bringin' that dog near me?" a man's gravelly voice made the floor seem like it was shaking.

"S-Sorry, sir! It got away again…" a child bent down and picked up a puppy that was dancing at his feet. Once the puppy was safely in his arms, he turned around but accidentally walked into someone. He let out a small 'oof.'

Looking up, he was met back with the smiling face of an older woman. Said older woman lightly ruffled the kid's hair before turning her attention back to a hunchy man. "Alex, I don't know what you got against dogs, but this here dog ain't botherin' no one. I say you do more of the botherin' than this dog." She folded her hands on her hips and sternly scolded the man.

The woman's name was Martha, but most residents of the shelter called her Nana. Being one of the longest-running residents of the abandoned factory, Martha was regarded as one of the so-called 'leaders.' Not much was known about the woman's past, as she didn't share much of it with anyone. Rumors have it that she was once a nurse, as she typically tends to those who fall ill or injured. She also has a soft-spot for kids and is often seen as a grandmotherly figure.

Said shelter that she and a good few others resided in was once a production mill. It was long abandoned after the founding company went bankrupt many years ago. It was closed off by the city for safety precautions, but a place with a roof is a place to stay. While there are official sheltered scattered across the city, those typically had wait times. This building still had electricity flowing through it for some reason, and there was no waiting list. There were no beds or anything, but blankets and bunched up clothes worked. There was more than enough space for everyone who took refuge in factory. Some of the floors and rooms were locked and chained off, however, so there could technically be even more space.

The building was designed with three floors. The basement floor was for storage of supplies and equipment. The middle floor, where more residents hung out, was where the main production lines were held. Some of the old machinery was still in there and some old furniture as well. There were some offices and staff rooms off to the side of the main production floor. Finally, the third floor, which was blocked off, is thought to be where all the paper work and business happened in the factory. It has never been confirmed, though, as all doors leading up there were chained shut. The only information they could go off of was from knowledge from other people.

Going back to the main floor, the man known as Alex grumbled and scratched the back of his head in frustration. "I just don' like dogs is all, Martha. I don' gotta like em either."

Martha let out a 'hmph' and she rolled her eyes. "I know you got your hands full with your applications an' whatnot, but try not to take that steam out of the children, kay?"

Alex simply let out a chuckle. "Yes, ma'am."

Martha turned back to the child who was standing by her hips. "A'ight, now that that's all cleared up, why don't you go put that dog where ever you put it an' find your brother, Pit? Let'em know Mr. Faust will be here at high noon to drop off lunch." She put her hands on the child's shoulder and watched as his bright blue eyes sparkled. "Okay, Nana!" he chirped before taking off. The older woman shook her head and smiled.

* * *

The child's name was Pit. Both he and his twin brother, Dark Pit, were found by one of the now late residents of the shelter swaddled together in a pit (creative, I know) when they were just babies. The man who found them, Emanuel, had just so happened to have been walking past the area on his way back from a bar on Christmas night. Being wasted beyond belief, he managed to take both babies in his arms and brought them out of the cold and into the life of living in the factory. That was about 10 years ago, and while their real age is unknown, Nana suspects they're both 11.

It was Emanuel who named them. That Christmas night he came stumbling into the main area, nearly tripping over his own feet, hollering about a "Pit" and "Dark Pit." Nobody knew what the drunk was talking about until he laid the swaddled children on an upside-down cardboard box. "Pit an' Dark Pit!" he has exclaimed while pointing at the two children. Nana swept in and cleared those who gathered around to warm the kids. After that night, the names just stuck with the two of them.

Of the two, Pit was the brighter and the cheerier twin. His brown hair was almost impossible to tame, just like his spirit. His eyes were a perfect blue, seeming to reflect the blue of the sky within them. He was small and lanky for his age from never really having the right nutrition. He did as he was told without much fuss. He's a little boy with the curiosity of an adventurer in him. His smile is infectious and can brighten anyone's day.

Dark Pit on the other hand, is akin to the exact opposite of Pit. If his jet-black hair and unusual crimson red eyes weren't enough, he was like an old man in a child's body. Dark Pit wasn't afraid to speak his mind about something and tended to live by the moral "honesty is the best policy." A lone wolf who preferred to be by himself rather than with others, but who would occasionally join in on 'family' fun. He could be soft and caring when he wanted to be, it was just unfortunate that that side of him wasn't out more often.

From the outside besides their somewhat similar appearance, it wouldn't occur to many that the two boys were twins. Because their personalities were so different, Dark Pit often came off older than Pit. Those who did know the two twins, however, knew that they had more in common with each than others think. For instance, both boys have insatiable appetites. There isn't a lot that either boy won't eat. If there wasn't a community portion control for everyone, they would probably eat enough for four people each. Secondly, both had a habit of sleeping on their stomachs. Trying to get either one of them to sleep when they had a stuffy cold was impossible if they had to sleep propped up. Lastly, for those who were around them for long enough, everyone knew that they were always attracted to each other. When either one got mad at the other and proclaimed they 'never wanted to see the other one ever again' it wouldn't be long before they could be found exploring or rolling around with one another. It was as if an invisible force was connecting the two of them.

There was something truly special about the two of them, and Nana had hopes that they'd find their way in the world eventually. She loved those children with all her heart, but in the back of her head she knew she should have brought them to an agency of some sort so they would be able to go to school to have an easier time in the world. What clouded this was the thought that they would possibly be separated by the system, and she didn't think that either would fare well with not living together (as much as Dark Pit would deny this).

Pit weaved his way around dusty machinery and maneuvered down a couple of hallways towards the back of the building. After exploring the building all these years, Pit and Dark Pit knew the in's and out's like the back of their head. They found short cuts and hidden passageways that the adults never looked for all the time that the building has been in use as a makeshift homeless shelter.

The brunette approached a doorway with heavy chains barring it shut. He put the puppy down and jiggled the doorknob a couple of times until the heavy door eventually squeaked open just enough for a child to be able to squeeze through. He coaxed the puppy to follow him through the door and after a little encouragement, it followed after its friend. He pushed the door closed and dusted his hands off before picking up the puppy again.

The door led to a staircase that led to the third floor. Pit carefully made his way up the two flights of stairs while making sure he didn't trip with the puppy in his hands, and made his way to the second door. This door was completely locked shut and there was no key to use to unlock or lock it. The only way through to the other side was through a small window that bordered the doorway. The boys had long ago smashed a hole in the glass to get in. Pit edged the puppy in and then followed himself, crawling on his hands and knees through the opening.

Inside there was one long hallway with cubicles in the center branching off from the center. Towards the end was one large door with similar windows to the outer door surrounding it. Pit smiled smugly to himself and looked down at the mutt in his arms, using one of his other hands to put a finger to his lips as if to signal 'shh,' not that the puppy would understand. He tiptoed his way across the rough carpet floor and made his way towards the facing door.

'I'm gonna scare the heck out of Pittoo!' he thought to himself and couldn't help but smile widely at the idea of scaring his brother. This plan was spoiled, however, as soon as his hand reached the doorknob.

"Boo!"

"AAAA!" Pit screamed, and he whipped around quickly with wide eyes.

Dark Pit had poked his head out from the nearest cubicle, having been waiting for his brother to come back to scare him. The black-haired boy threw his head back and laughed to the sky. "HA! You should have seen the look on your face!"

Pit blushed and pouted, turning his head to quickly look away. "Geese," he started, "I could have dropped Puppy!" he put the dog down and opened the door, allowing it to stumble over its paws and into the room.

"But you didn't." Dark Pit grinned and followed his brother into the room.

This room must have once been a large conference room. There were large windows along the side wall, and there were remnants of a large table having once sat in the center due to the floor around the ovular shape having faded from the sun. This is where the boys dubbed their 'hide out' and where 'no adults were allowed.' The adults had never been able to find them up there, because no adult was able to fit through the second floor door.

It's also where they mainly kept 'Puppy,' or a dog that they had found lost around the building a couple weeks ago. Both boys cared for the dog, but Dark Pit would never admit to caring for the little yellow fluffball.

The two boys lost track of time as they started wrestling with each other and with Puppy. They threw a ball to each other, and Puppy started back and forth between the two, yipping happily. Eventually they started playing their own game of wall ball and gave Puppy chances to catch the ball. After playing for a while, the two brothers were laying on the ground with their chests heaving from all of the playing they did. It started to get hot a while ago, but kids being kids, they didn't stop.

Puppy flopped over to Dark Pit and promptly started to lick his sweaty face. Dark Pit put his hands up in protest. "Puppy, no! That's gross." Then he frowned. "Did you really have to name it Puppy?"

Pit looked over from where he was laying. "What? Nana was the one who-" he stopped mid sentence. "Ah!" he yelled, sitting up. He wiped some sweat that had built up on his forehead with his arm. "Nana! I forgot! She said that lunch was going to be coming soon!" He blurted out. The brunette ran his fingers back through his sweaty hair. "Mr. Faust was going to be bringing lunch over! And we totally missed him! Pittoo!" Pit squeezed his eyes shut.

"Don't call me that!" the darker haired twin grumbled.

"Nana is going to be so upset!" Pit wanted to do nothing more than to hide from the world.

Mr. Faust was one of the local pizza shop managers. He used to be one of the usuals at the building up until a few years ago when he managed to land a job making pizzas. Now he's a manager for the business and comes to visit about once a month to bring leftovers from catering events and such. He enjoyed seeing the kids each time he came, and he always made sure to bring them some sweets from the dessert menu.

Dark Pit snickered. "Nana is gonna be angry! Maybe she'll even give my your share of dessert."

The brunette's eyes went wide open. "NO! Anything but that, please, Pittoo!" Pit begged for mercy from his brother.

At that moment, Puppy's nose went up in the air and she sniffed a few times.

Dark Pit got up. "How many times do I have to say it? Don't call me that! My name is Dark Pit!" Then it hit him. A rancid smell hit his nose. It made the air seem thicker than it really was. "What is this smell?" He covered his nose with his hand and glared at Pit.

Pit scoweled. "You smelt it, you dealt it!" he stuck his tongue out.

The raven-haired brother opened the office door and started down the hallway with Pit behind him. Puppy wasn't that far behind Pit. He turned around. "No, Puppy," he scolded, "you can't come with us. Alex doesn't like dogs." It's too bad that puppy dog eyes were one of Pit's strengths but also one of his weaknesses. Puppy looked sadly at the boy. This made Pit's lip start to quiver and he pulled Puppy into a hug.

"C'mon, Pit stain! If you're gonna be any slower, Nana's gonna be so angry she'll blast a hole right through the floor to find you!" Dark Pit teased.

Then it happened. As if some deity heard his words, the room suddenly shook. There was a boom that instantly made Dark Pit's ears immediately start ringing. A few feet in front of where Dark Pit would have been if he hadn't slowed down to tease Pit exploded with chunks of concrete, wood, and insulation flying up into the air. Flames erupted from the giant hole now blocking their only way out. Black smoke bellowed towards the ceiling and it quickly engulfed the room.

The blast sent Dark Pit directly to the ground. It took him a moment to process what just happened as fire licked up from the floor below. Debris with embers stuck to them started to eat away at whatever was around them.

Somehow Dark Pit was able to snap out of his trance and he scrambled backwards on his hands and knees towards his twin brother, not paying any attention to the carpet burn the action was giving him.

Pit seemed to be equally as dazed as Dark Pit just was. He held Puppy close to his chest, which said puppy was trembling like a leaf in his arms. Pit's wide blue eyes suddenly made their way to Dark Pit's red ones. His mouth kept opening as if he was trying to say something, but no words were coming out.

As Dark Pit locked eyes with his brother, he scrambled to his feet to get to his brother. His ringing ears failed to hear the loud 'SNAP' that echoed through the room. The next thing he knew, he saw his brother's eyes dart towards the ceiling and seem to get impossibly wider. All he was able to register was himself suddenly being pushed backwards, and then stars and sudden blackness swallowed his vision.

* * *

By the time Dark Pit came around, the room was filled to the brim with smoke. His lungs felt like they were on fire. Upon finally opening his eyes, they started to water burn from all of the smoke. He cupped a hand over his mouth and nose and started to cough hard. His mind was a buzz. There was an explosion… he went to crawl back to Pit and instead was pushed over backwards and hit his head on the ground… He kept his eyes closed and tried to piece together as much as his pounding head was letting him. 'Pit!' his red eyes flew open as he started to look around.

"Pit? Pit! Where are you?!" he rasped out. It was hard to breathe and all the smoke was making him cough.

That was when he saw Puppy going absolutely bonkers. Barking and whining while dancing around as if she really needed to use the bathroom. When Dark Pit finally turned around, he understood why.

Right where he was previously standing before he was pushed, was Pit, lying facedown on the carpet. A giant red support beam laid strewn across his back, pinning him to the ground. Pit wasn't moving.

Despite his pounding headache, Dark Pit threw himself to his brother. "Pit! Pit we need to get out of here!" he frantically shook his brother's shoulder to try and wake him. "Come on, Pit! We need to go!" the raven-haired boy tried to lift the beam on one side by himself, but it was too heavy.

The straining of trying to lift the beam caused Dark Pit to start coughing harder and harder, and soon his vision was filled with dizzying stars once again. He couldn't breathe-! Just before all went black again, he managed to see from the corner of his eye, the glass windows in the office room shatter, and he was able to see dark figures making their way inside.

'Ah… I can't breathe…' he boy thought, as his vision went fuzzy. The last image he got being of his twin's face. His eyes were closed. His mouth was slightly open. He looked almost as if he were asleep. If only it weren't for the ugly red that streamed down and into a growing puddle on the floor... Before he lost consciousness again, Dark Pit affirmed to himself that this was all just a dream, and that he'd be waking up shortly.

* * *

A/N: Oh worm? I honestly wasn't expecting to get likes, favorites, and follows from this. Thank you to all of those who checked this out!

I'm not an English major in any way; this is just a little side hobby! If there are any grammar mistakes that I missed while re-reading, let me know! I'll do my best to fix it up.

That being said, I had a hard time getting the story to flow in the beginning. Everything I wrote just didn't seem right. I think I finally got it squared away. I hope the ending of this chapter made up for the eugh beginning!

If people are curious enough, I'm down to do a floor/layout plan of the building if it's too vague. I tried to incorporate as much detail as I could, but it's hard explaining building layouts.

Thank you again to everyone who took the time to stop by and check this story out!


	3. Pupfish

**Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days**

**Chapter 3:** Pupfish

* * *

Upon walking through the front doors of Angel Land University Hospital, it became easy to understand why it was rated as one of the top hospitals in the world. A conveyer belt brought them forward towards the front desk, which was plaqued with various awards that the hospital and its workers have won. A grand foyer area towards the sides boasted luscious green plants that brought life into the what would be an unexciting place. Pamphlet holders carried dozens of health-related hand-outs, covering all the way from A to Z of different medical conditions.

Upon arriving to the front desk, both women stepped off the belt that carried them from the front doors. A short-statured and plump woman sat behind the counter. "Hi," she said, "what can I get for you today?"

"I'm Lady Paluntena." The green-haired woman said.

"And I'm Viridi Nature." The shorter blonde beamed.

"We're both students from Angel Land University. We're here for our first day of volunteer work." Finished Paluntena.

"Oh! I need you to sign in here, as well as write your names on these," the woman shuffled some papers on her desk and put two name tags in front of the two. "These will serve as your passes. Wear these every visit, and try to keep them somewhere visible." She put down two pens as well.

Paluntena and Viridi both wrote their names on their tags and on the sign-in sheet. Viridi turned her I's into little flowers for a decorative touch.

"Thank you. To get to the Children's Ward, just follow down hallway A4. The main C-hub is right after B4." The secretary stood up a little to point in the direction of the hallway the two needed to head down.

After exchanging thank yous, the women headed over to the A4 hallway, which connected right off of the A-hub. There were four branching hallways and each went in different directions, but at the same time the hospital was all connected. They stepped on the conveyer belt and rode it all the way to the B4 area. The hallways were made of glass panels all the way around much like the main area. It offered a 360 degree view of the hospital grounds and of other hallways. Hedges hugged the sides of the panels and within the grounds were various benches, statues, fountains, and other lawn decorations.

Soon enough, the pair stood before the main children's ward, or the C-hub. The main area boasted plenty of colors all around. The floors were decorated with tiles that had rainbow footprints painted on that led to the front desk. The chairs sported abstract patterns, and the tables were a bright orange. A giant salt-water fish tank that reached from the floor to the ceiling sat in the middle. With it being fairly early, there weren't many patients yet. Viridi bet that come an hour or two that the lobby would be brimming with snotty kids.

"Ah, Miss Paluntena! You're here!" an excited voice on an older woman called them from the side.

The woman appeared to be in her late 70's. She sported a white lab coat with many different colored pens clipped to the inside of her pocket. She sat in one of the crazy chairs sipping coffee while running a hand through her clearly dyed auburn hair.

Paluntena smiled and started to stroll over to the lady. Viridi shrugged and followed behind her.

"Doctor Brovanski! It's been so long!" Paluntena and the woman embraced. The doctor looked the young woman up and down before her.

"Well I'll be…" she hummed. "You've grown up to be quite the young woman, haven't you, Lady?" Doctor Brovanski nodded to herself and took another sip of her coffee. She stole a glance at Viridi, who straightened up a bit where she stood.

The doctor put her mug down and stuck her hand out. "Hello there, young miss. I'm Doctor Brovanski, but just call me Val. You must be…" she paused.

"Viridi Nature" the petite blonde reached forward and took the doctor's outstretched hand.

"Ah yes, Viridi Nature, that's right. I'm the head pediatrician in this ward, and I'll be overlooking your volunteer hours here at the ward. I take it you're excited to meet who you'll be paired up with?"

"You… could say that." Viridi looked away and scratched her cheek, looking fairly bored.

"Bah, don't give me that! It'll be fun! If you're worried about catching something, don't worry about it. This is the cleanest hospital I've ever worked in." Val smiled, and got up from the chair with a small 'hup' sound. "Follow me to my office. We'll discuss your 'siblings' and some of the things that you can expect while volunteering here, as well as answer any questions or any concerns you have."

"Please, lead the way." Paluntena stepped out of the way to let the older woman past.

Despite her age, Doctor Brovanski moved around quite well. Her pace was sharp and her posture was straight. She moved forward with her coat floating behind her slightly. Viridi had the skip a little bit to catch up with the pace.

"I'm sure you're aware of the layout here. C1 is where all of the grunt work is. Paperwork is filed, PR is housed there, some janitorial offices, and such. You won't be going down there much unless you are asked to make a copy of something or are asked to bring something down there. I don't really expect you'll be doing any of that sort." Val pointed towards the hallway labeled C1 at the top. "Next," she pointed at C2, "is C2. This is where the main pediatricians and their offices are. That is where most folk and kiddos go when they come here. Doctors appointments and such. Again, I don't suspect you'll be down there too much. You can pretty much avoid most contamination by staying away from there."

The doctor started towards C3. C3 sported a closed off, frosted glass wall. There were double doors in the center with a key-card reader glowing red. She held her badge up to the reader and it beeped, and the doors were unlocked. Once they were shuffled inside the hallway, they stayed on the conveyer belt until another set of similar doors sat. Once again, she swiped her card and the doors opened.

"This is the main children's hospital area. My office is between C3 and C4. I don't expect you to come down here either, unless you need to bring your 'sibling' to an appointment or need to look for me. You can only get in here with an ID badge or with a temporary pass. Your badges should work at the doors. If not, whoever is at the main desk can unlock the doors for you." Without much time to look around, Val led them to her office, which as she said, was between both sections.

She opened her door, which was decorated in sticky notes from other doctors and nurses to update her on things that were going on, or just fun little notes. She let both women through before closing the door behind them.

The office was simple. The walls were a cream color with a viney sort of border and with a white trim. Various tree plants were spread about. A row of filing cabinets sat against one of the walls, and on the opposite was rows of doctor books collected over the years. Framed awards also hung from the walls, all with "Valentine Brovanski" written in cursive on them.

Viridi's eyes lit up at the greenery.

Doctor Brovanski made her way behind her desk and plopped down in her chair. In front of her desk were two couches facing each other with a glass coffee table in the middle. "Grab a seat, please." She ushered the two to sit down. Both took a couch and turned to her.

"Alight, let's get this meeting started, yes?"

Both nodded.

"I like the enthusiasm!" the doctor beamed. 

* * *

How long had he been here for? Dark Pit lost track of the days. Days merged into one another, and over time he lost count even of what day it currently was. Ah… his head hurt.

The raven-haired boy was currently sitting in a hard metal chair in front of a little table with toys and coloring pages scattered about on it. For some reason, the mess angered him, and he felt compelled to tidy up the table a bit. He was aware of someone calling out his name but the boy just went through his self-assigned task of organizing the crayons back in their boxes and stacking the scribbled coloring pages in one pile and clean pages in another. Someone sighed.

"Alright, Dark Pit. Let's take a break. How about we go and see your brother?" a woman who was sitting across from Dark Pit warmly suggested to the boy. Her name is Lauren Bayton, but she was known most as Doctor B. She's one of the in-house pediatric psychological and behavioral doctors at Angel Land University. She saw a plethora of cases throughout her ten years of being a doctor. Some were good and some weren't so good. Her current case was wavering on a thin edge of good and bad.

Dark Pit didn't respond. If anything, his face seemed to flash into something akin to rage before settling to an annoyed scowl. "I don't wanna," he said flatly. He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Come on, it isn't that bad. Besides, it makes your brother happy. We can just pop our heads in and leave. How about that?" Doctor B suggested.

Dark Pit just rolled his eyes and hopped down from his chair. The eleven-year-old knew that he wouldn't really have a say in the matter, because no matter what he said, the lady would just try to get him to go, even if it took bribes. Although… if she did promise to sneak him an extra dessert, he supposed he could go and just say hi to Pit.

"One extra dessert and he have a deal." he stuck his hand out to shake. It was graciously accepted and the two walked out of the small office.

* * *

Pit was known well around the pediatrics ward, and news of the 'actual angel' in the hospital started to spread across other departments and wards. His smile was contagious and his laughter brought joy to everyone who was blessed to hear it. The boy was innocently curious about the world that revolved around him, even though he was only able to explore a fraction of it. Once you saw into his wide blue eyes, you were sucked into his adventure.

Said boy was in the same position he'd been in for… well… he wasn't quite sure at this point. There hadn't been any tests so far today, so he hadn't been moved. He looked around for the remote that went to the little television that was in his room but found that he had accidentally tossed it too far away from him on the bed to reach it. Pit tentatively rose from where he was propped up against a pile of pillows. He reached out with the tips of his fingers to try and grab at the remote but after he moved to a certain point, a sharp pain ran up along his spine and he cried out as his back gave out on him and he fell against the pillow pile again.

Ow… that hurt. Pit sighed in defeat and stared up at the ceiling. The faint buzzing of the air conditioner hummed through his head as he laid in what otherwise would have been complete silence. The brunette felt something tickle his face so he went to wipe at it. Huh… Pit didn't remember crying. He stared at the wetness on his hand as his vision slowly started to distort from the tears he didn't know he had. It didn't take long for a steady stream to start making their way down his cheeks. His hands couldn't wipe them away fast enough.

Through his runny nose and hiccupping, Pit couldn't help but let a wobbly smile plaster his face. 'I bet Pittoo would call me a baby if he saw me crying.' he thought.

Red eyes watched from the room's viewing window in the hallway as cerulean blue eyes were being palmed at on the other side. The boy was just tall enough to look through when he stood on his tiptoes. He stood for a moment with a blank expression before lowering himself and turning on his heel to go back to his room.

"Dark Pit, where are you going?" the doctor following a few meters behind him asked as he pushed past her.

"My head hurts." Was all he responded with as he rounded a corner away from sight. Doctor B sighed and looked in through the window, where she saw a young boy with a face flushed from crying, smile while looking into his hands. She frowned before turning herself to go find someone. Bodies take time to heal, as does the mind and heart. 

* * *

My bad about the delay. I had most of this typed out, and then I got busy with a summer course and kinda forgot that this existed on my laptop. I do want to try and update this regularly! With college starting up again in a few weeks, updates may get thrown around and I apologize if there isn't any new content. I want to try to aim for a minimum of one chapter a month, but of course, the more the merrier.

I don't have any beta readers to check over for grammar or spelling mistakes, so I'm sorry if my writing is a mess. If things don't make sense, please let me know! It makes sense in my head, but then again, I know what I mean when I'm writing things, as I kind of know the direction of where this is heading.

Thanks for reading!


	4. Record Red

**Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days**

**Chapter 4: **Record Red

* * *

Doctor Brovanski shuffled through a pile of papers that was stacked on her desk. She swept aside some sticky notes that had the edges curling in on themselves. After running a hand through her wild hair and taking a few sips of coffee while glancing at some of the more 'important' papers, she finally cleared her throat to look at the two women.

"Alright, ladies!" the doctor started. "Let's go over the basics, and answer any questions you might have."

Paluntena and Viridi nodded.

"While volunteering here, you'll take on the role of an 'older sibling' to one or more of the children placed here in the C4 ward. These are the more long-term cases here at the hospital. Some will only be in here for a few months, while others will be or have been here for a few years. Some will be all set and ready to enter the real world after intense in-house therapy, but most are going to need care for the rest of their lives. We're dedicated here to providing all children, no matter the financial situation or medical needs, the best possible care."

"Your duties will include bringing your younger sibling to any appointments that may be scheduled, running errands given to you by staff, taking your kid on walks around the hospital if they're allowed to, and just giving major TLC to these kiddos. If permitted, you may also take your sibling off-campus, given you are back by a scheduled curfew time. Some days will be better than others for your sibling, and that may in turn reflect onto you. All we ask is that you try your best to distract them from whatever their case may be." Doctor Brovanski had folded her hands and had leaned in closer to the two women at some point during her shpeel.

"Okay!" she continued. Any trace of seriousness that she may have held was wiped away. "How about we talk about your siblings!"

* * *

The crazy haired doctor pulled out two binders from her desk, one blue and one red. She handed the blue one to Paluntena from across the desk, and then handed the red one to Viridi, who had to stretch a bit more than Paluntena to reach.

"Your cases are a bit… unique to say the least."

The two college students looked at each other before opening their binders at the same time. Inside was a document detailing their sibling, a headshot photo included.

"I'm sure you two heard about it, but do you remember that big warehouse fire down in Cape Town about a month ago?"

The two nodded.

"Then you both probably heard that two children were rescued from the building before it partially collapsed?"

Another nod, followed by widening eyes.

"We decided to pair you up with them. We've been caring for them since, and we think it may be a good idea for them to get a little taste of the outside world. I assume you two smart girls glossed over the bios? Lady, I decided to pair you up with little Pit, and Viridi, I paired you up with Dark Pit."

Paluntena had to stifle a snort while Viridi slowly turned to look at Doctor Brovanski.

"Dark… Pit?" she warbled. There were many emotions coming from Viridi's face regarding this news. "His name… is Dark Pit?"

"Well, we don't have any other name to call him currently. He gets into a tizzy whenever someone calls him anything else. The only one who is allowed to call him anything else is his brother. Dark Pit doesn't ask us to call him anything else, so we just rolled with it. Plus, that kid has a set of lungs when he wants to."

Viridi looked over the bio paper that was in front of her. Some of the information she could understand, but medical words were beyond her expertise. She stared into the crimson eyes that looked right back at her.

"What does any of this medical gook mean?" she asked while scrunching her nose up a little trying to read it.

"Ah, in the simplest way to put it possibly, Dark Pit suffered a bit of head trauma in the incident. I could go into the specifics, but to put it short, since then he's prone to headaches and bouts of mood swings among other things. These will most likely affect him for the rest of his life and it'll definitely cause some hurdles. It's why we'll make sure he has a solid network of any sort of help that he'll need at a moment's notice," the doctor said.

Viridi simply made an 'o' shape with her mouth before leaning across to peak at Paluntena's binder.

"Little Pit is Dark Pit's twin brother," Doctor B started, "and he's the less moody, more excitable of the two. He's such a lovely little guy—everyone who meets him adores him. He's such a cheery kid despite everything that happened."

"What exactly happened?" Paluntena asked. Unlike Viridi, she was able to understand a bit more of the medical language that was printed before her.

"Pit doesn't remember exactly what happened so we can only go off of the bits and pieces that Dark Pit has shared with us. Usually talking about makes him upset so we try to leave that to the psychological side rather than the doctor side. From what we gathered from the official investigation, it appears that the rising temperature in the building caused one of the ceiling support beams to melt and fall. We've been able to puzzle together that Pit seems to have seen the beam and pushed Dark Pit out of the way so he wouldn't hit by it. Unfortunately, this caused the beam to then fall on Pit instead. He received heavy damage to his spinal cord and as such, is paralyzed from the waist down. We think the shock may have caused him to temporarily block his memory. As far as he knows, there was an accident where he and Dark Pit were seriously injured but he doesn't remember the events."

Paluntena's heart became heavy hearing this. She'd never even met the boy, but after learning that all of this was going on inside the building while she watched the outside, she felt a tug in her chest. Such young kids had their life almost yanked from them in an instant. Now they would be forced to travel a rocky road for the rest of their lives.

Doctor B seemed to notice the drop in atmosphere. She smiled before slamming her hands on her desk and standing up quickly. "Now, none of that. Who's ready to meet these kiddos?"

* * *

I'm so sorry about the long delay. As soon as I said that I was looking to update more frequently, I suddenly stopped LOL. I wanted to work on this chapter longer, but I hope that you all like this surprise drop before the new year (for me at least)!

Here's to the new year and hopefully many more to come!


	5. Faces

**Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days**

**Chapter 5: **Faces

* * *

If it weren't for the railings at the side of his bed, Pit for sure would have fallen off his mattress from all the bouncing around he was doing. Every time someone walked into his room, he'd ask how much longer it was going to be. He was just so excited! Today was the day that he was going to be meeting his 'older sibling' who would come and play with him. The boy was thankful for the nurses and doctors who took time when their shifts were done to play with him but he always felt a little guilty when they did. They should be going home to their own families after working! Yet he swallowed his thoughts down and let himself live in the moment. He's expressed his loneliness to his caretakers before, especially where his brother doesn't visit him very often. Pit doesn't understand why, but at the moment, he can't go talk to Dark Pit without help. 

Dark Pit, on the other hand, was loathing his meeting with this so called 'older sibling' he would be getting. He has one annoying sibling and that was enough. He didn't need someone else bossing him around or bothering him like the workers here do. "It's good for you" and, "It'll help you get better." It's the same old story every single day. Yet subconsciously, he didn't know that a part of him didn't want this routine to break. Every day was the same and he knew what to expect. Sudden changes to his schedule made him feel as though he was walking on a balance beam. The caretakers tried to reason with Dark Pit by telling him that changes to his schedule would be good but he blocked their words out. 

* * *

The walk through the hallways weren't as bad as Viridi thought. She knew that Paluntena would have no problem memorizing the twists and turns within the hospital, but she wasn't the green haired woman. From Doctor Brovanski's office, it was about a three-minute walk to the C4 area. More frosted glass panels lined the sturdy set of double doors blocking the way. The woman swiped her key card in front of the reader and the doors slid open for the trio to walk inside. Here, the atmosphere was very different. Here, the walls and floors were as plain as plain could be. A white floor with white walls. From this doorway, there was a small reception desk with a few people dressed in colorful scrubs flipping through charts and conversing. The hallway went left and right with doorways lining between. 

"This is the middle C4 area. This is where records are held and where coffee is grabbed. There's always somewhere here so if you ever need anything, check in here," the doctor said while gesturing to the desk. The employees there smiled and waves, and Paluntena and Viridi waved back. "You'll get familiar with the regulars who are around here." 

She took a left from there, heading deeper into the ward. They walked passed a few rooms, each with their own viewing window. The rooms seemed to each have a theme. One was ocean themed while another was jungle themed. The kids in the rooms were either minding their own or were playing with a caretaker. 

"As I mentioned earlier," she said, "C4 is for longer-term cases. Patients who require in-house therapy or who will only be in our care for a few months are stationed more towards the front, or the right side of the middle C4. This side is for our long-term cases. Majority of these cases will need special long-term help into their teen and adult years. Our team of specialists sees to each patient's unique situation, and devises plans to help them through their life." 

After a bit more walking, Doctor Brovanski stopped in front of a door with an overly decorated door sign. "Lady, this is Pit's room. I don't think I need to go in there. He knows about you coming, and by gods, he's very excited to meet you. I'm going to walk Miss Viridi down to Dark Pit's room and I'll stop in after to check in," she finished with a smile and ushered Viridi to keep following her. The small blonde woman gave Paluntena a cheeky thumbs up and mouthed a 'good luck' before continuing forward. 

Paluntena reached up to knock on the door but for some reason she stopped to catch her breath. With a huff of determination, she knocked on the door and opened it to a whole new world. 

* * *

Pit's mind was elsewhere when there was a knock at the door. He'd been munching on some crackers while some cartoons sang in the background on the small TV stationed in his room. He was caught extremely off guard when a tall, beautiful young woman with flowing green hair walked into his room. With cheeks stuffed with crackers, he tried to say hello, but all that came out was a garbled string of sounds. He swallowed hard and started choking a bit which caused a look of concern to jump onto the woman's face. 

"A-Are you okay? Should I go get someone?" she asked with wide eyes. Pit simply waved his hand in a dismissive motion while reaching for a cup filled with water. After a few swigs he let out a loud 'ah' and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. A smile instantly plastered itself to his face. 

"Hello, I'm Pit! Are you my older sibling?" 

This caused Paluntena to start laughing, which in turn made Pit look at her with confusion. She suddenly understood why Val had said his smiles were contagious around the unit. 

"Yes, I'm Lady Paluntena, but you can just call me Paluntena," she held her hand out for Pit to shake it. He gladly accepted and shook hands with her. 

"Why only just 'Paluntena?' Lady Paluntena is such a pretty name! It's like… like… a god name!" Pit asked her while she slung her purse on the edge of a nearby chair and while she scooched it closer to Pit's bed. 

"Well, 'Lady Paluntena' is kind of a mouthful. 'Lady' is a strange first name, so Paluntena usually works. If you wish to call me Lady Paluntena, you may do that." 

Pit's face contorted as the gears started to grind in his head and then he started giggling. "Cause people would call you Lady Lady Paluntena!" 

"Thanks right! So, Pit, how about we get to know each other a little bit more, since I'll be your older sibling!" 

"Yeah yeah yeah!" the brunette boy's eyes sparkled while he nodded his head furiously. "Um… but how do we start?" 

"How about we start with your name, your favorite color, your favorite food, and your favorite animal? Would you like me to go first?" Paluntena offered. This was a common icebreaker used to get to know one another, so she figured it'd be easy enough with Pit. 

"Yeah, you can go first!" the boy was absolutely glowing with wonder and excitement. 

"Well, I'm Lady Paluntena. My favorite color is green. My favorite food is anything to do with vegetables. And my favorite animals are birds." 

"Your favorite color is green like your hair!" 

Paluntena laughed. "Yes, like my hair. Now you go." 

"My name is Pit! My favorite color is blue, like the walls in my room! My favorite food is… is… anything NOT vegetables! Any my favorite animals are unicorns!" 

"Unicorns?" this caused the woman to laugh once again. 

"Yeah, unicorns! Ones that can fly and that have really cool hair!" Pit made a flying motion with his hand in his explanation." 

"Oh, I see. And what's this I hear about you not liking vegetables?" 

"Vegetables are icky! Meat is where it's at!" he stuck his tongue out with a gagging sound. 

"Well, without vegetables, I wouldn't be able to grow this tall!" she stood up and swished her hair to prove a point. 

"What?! So you're saying if I eat vegetables, I'll be tall like you?!" the boy's mouth was agape. 

"Of course! Vegetables are what make you strong and healthy after all!" the green haired woman took a seat again. 

Pit looked down at his hands in his lap. "That's what the nurses and caretakers tell me. Sometimes I overhear them saying that mine and my brother's growing is 'stunted' and I don't know what that means. It makes them look sad so it must be sad, right?" 

Paluntena took one of his hands into her own and looked into his eyes. "Pit, it's not a sad thing. You still have so much life ahead of you—there's no rush to grow! Takes things one day at a time," she smiled warmly. The boy's face brightened up a bit. "Now," Paluntena let go of his hand and instead sat back in the chair, "tell me all about this brother of yours."

* * *

"So, Viridi, I've assigned Dark Pit to you. He may be a challenging case, but a spry young woman like yourself could take this, aye?" They walked a little bit further down the hallway. Viridi noted that the doors down here required a keycard to get in. 

"A challenge, you say? Ha, this'll be easy. What harm could a little boy do anyways?" the plant lover tossed her ponytail behind her shoulder while walking. Her response brought a chuckle out of the older doctor. 

"You'd be surprised. Now, I need to explain a few things here. First, doors down this end of the corridor require key access to get in and out. Pretty much any kind of card lets you in and out. Hell, someone once tried their car insurance card and it let them in. The point is, you'll need a card to get out as well. I advise you keep your card close to you, as we've had some kids swipe them when their owner wasn't looking." 

They stopped at a door with a boring 'Dark Pit' doorhanger written in doctor scribble on a piece of computer paper. 

"I do need to cover a few things before we go in. First, if Dark Pit ever does something that makes you feel uncomfortable, please don't hesitate on leaving the room and finding any one of us. He's known to get loud. Second, I advise you keep anything expensive out of reach. He's prone to breaking things more often than not. It's not his fault—he can get frustrated if he isn't able to do something and it sometimes escalates. Third, he required medicine every six hours. He's highly prone to migraines. While the medicine helps a little, it can't fully prevent them. If he says he has a headache, just darken the room. The glass here is one way so light from the hallway shouldn't be a problem." The doctor was counting on her fingers as she was talking. "So, any thoughts or questions?" 

Viridi would be lying if she didn't say she didn't feel at least a little bit put off by all this information. She thought she would just be playing babysitter. This was like babysitter but on hard mode. Either way, she shrugged her shoulders. "He just sounds like a kid to me." Sometimes her stubbornness was worth inheriting from her mother. 

Val smiled at Viridi. "That's what we like to hear. Alrighty then, how about we meet the boy?" She turned and knocked politely on the door. Without waiting for a response, she slid her card under the reader and the door slid open.

* * *

"Go away." 

"Now, now, Dark Pit. You've got a special visitor here!" Val patiently talked back to the boy while stepping aside for Viridi to step in. 

The petite woman wasn't prepared for just how red the young boy's eyes were. They locked gazes momentarily until Viridi deflected hers to elsewhere in the room. 

"I don't want to be a part of this shitty sibling thing," the raven haired boy crossed his arms while he sat crosslegged in his bed. 

The room was a dark plum colored with gold accents sprinkled around. On the walls were star-like stickers that were sprinkled around. In all, Viridi wouldn't mind having this room to herself. Of course, it was missing the plants she so dearly loved. 

"Dark Pit, watch your language, please," Val sighed. 

"Bite me," Dark Pit stuck his tongue out at her. 

Viridi rolled her eyes and she set her purse down on the floor close to the door. "Okay," she said, and she began to make her way towards the boy. His eyes went wide and he was quick to stand up in his bed. 

"I didn't mean it literally, you crazy woman!" 

"Of course you didn't," Viridi turned to wink at Doctor Brovanski, who promptly got the message. She gave a wave to the college student before rescanning her card and exiting the room, leaving the two alone. 

* * *

"I don't want you here." 

"And I don't want to be here, but here we are, stuck with one another. It's like fate played a cruel hand, hm?" Viridi was sitting with the closest chair next to Dark Pit's bed, with her legs propped up on his bed. The young boy scooted as far as he could away from her, as if her aura was acid. 

"Then just leave," he pointed at the door. 

"No can do, kiddo. I need to be here with you in order to graduate so that I can get on with my life. Now, how about we start with introductions. I'm Viridi Nature-" 

"I don't care." 

Viridi narrowed her eyes at Dark Pit. If this was the game that he wanted to play, then she'd play with him. "I'm Viridi Nature. I'm a college student at Angel Land University studying bio-energy and business. A fun fact about me is that I love gardening. Now, how about you go." 

Dark Pit glared at her. "This is stupid. I'm not doing this." 

"Alright then, it's going to be a long…" she pulled out her phone from her dress pocket. "three hours then. I've got nothing to do and nowhere to be, so it'll just be awkward for both of us." 

Dark Pit studied Viridi for a moment and found that the woman wasn't budging. He let out a growling sort of noise before giving in. "I'm Dark Pit. Don't call me by anything else. I'm stuck in this shithole with my dumbass brother. A fun fact is that I hate it here." 

"Mmh. See? That wasn't so hard, now was it?" 

The raven haired boy looked at her with a crazy look. "You're not going to tell me to watch my mouth?" 

The woman shrugged. "If you want me to, I can. But that's just a waste of time and energy. Besides, you won't actually stop even if I asked you to, right? So there you have it. Now, what do you have to do around here? I'm bored." 

The gears in Dark Pit's head were turning. This tiny woman wasn't bossing him around. In fact, she wasn't doing anything. She just sat in the damn chair with her legs up on his bed looking around without a care in the world. Dark Pit wasn't able to pinpoint exactly how the woman made him feel. All he knew is that he was going to be stuck with her whether he wanted her to be or not.

* * *

_Here's the next chapter to Guide Us Through Our Darkest Days. I'm so sorry about the five-month delay of this chapter. This semester had an absolute killer of a work load. Any free time I had went into playing games and other hobby activities ^^;_

_I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes. I don't have a beta reader to look this over. If there are any inconsistencies with the story, I apologize for that as well. I'm just going based on what I can remember from previous chapters. I could go back and read them to better digest the material, but that's something I'll say I'll do and then I'll never get it done._

_So the siblings finally meet! I didn't want to go too overboard with the initial meetings. If I did, this chapter would be insanely long and I don't want that. It's also a bit challenging in remembering that Pit can't exactly move around as well as he actually would. He's very excitable and curious, so I can only really imagine him literally vibrating in excitement. Dark Pit on the other hand, I didn't want to make him over the top. He's going through a lot right now and he has a hard time managing his emotions. It may seem extreme that he's basically locked in a room, but that's because he tried escaping before when they kept him in an open room. This is something I'll talk about later in the actual story, but I just wanted to give a quick explanation for that._

_I hope that you enjoyed reading this chapter! I'll hopefully get the next one out soon._

_Until next time!_

_-Puck_


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